Blog

The Keys to Health

November 23, 2016 by Paul Knechtel DC

There are no guarantees in health. It is our daily life habits that primarily determine our health and longevity, not genetics. This is why we as individuals ne

The following are my personal observations and study from being involved in health care for over 30 years. Adapting some of these important ideas to your life should help you feel better and give you more energy. These recommendations are not meant as a substitute for supervised medical care. Talk to your doctor if you have any concern about applying any of the following.

Nutrition

Most of us are in denial in when it comes to our daily nutritional habits. Most people have too much processed and prepared foods in their diet and many actually believe that they have a healthy diet when they don’t.

Processed sugar and refined table salt are very detrimental to our health and create chronic inflammation problems in the body leading to digestive, circulatory, nervous system, and joint problems. The current medical research has confirmed that excessive sugar consumption is the cause of cardiovascular disease—not fat.

Eat real food and mostly a plant-based diet. It is important to consume numerous servings of vegetables every day. Buy locally when available. It is healthier nutritionally because it is fresher and it hasn’t had traveled great distances. As an added bonus, buying locally helps boost your local economy.

Read all food labels. Don’t shop when you’re hungry. Plan your meals as this helps you avoid just “grabbing something quick.” If it says it’s “natural” and comes in a box then it most likely isn’t healthy. Drink water throughout the day.

Movement

Movement is “the act of moving your body or part of your body.” (Merriam-Webster Dictionary) Functional movement and exercise patterns are natural practical movement patterns that are necessary for everyday life. Walking on a treadmill and working out on machines are not functional exercises and create poor movement patterns leading in the long-term to imbalances.

Natural movements on a variety of surfaces helps develop neural pathways that help our body better adapt to the world around us. Humans evolved to walk, move and perform complex multi-directional movements.

Strong muscles mean stronger bones. The most important exercise humans can do is walk. We evolved to walk, not ride in man-made vehicles. Squatting down and properly hinging (bending) at your hips is necessary for everyday life and is probably the single most important movement pattern necessary for humans to maintain their independence.

Rest, Relaxation & Good Posture

Our body needs proper rest and relaxation time in order to heal. Much of our healing, recuperation and recovery takes place while we sleep. As much as movement is important to our health, so is proper rest. Sometimes we don’t sleep well because we are not physically tired or because we are overstimulated by the blue light emitted from watching television or spending time on our computers too close to bedtime. Reading or having quiet time helps our body wind down to prepare us to rest. If you have trouble sleeping re-evaluate your daily routine and make some changes. Caffeine and sugar late in the day may overstimulate us.

Good posture is very important to help improve and minimize the stress on your joints. Sit upright with a slight forward curve in your lower back, straight up, shoulders back, chest out, head aligned over your shoulders. Good posture also helps your digestive system and improves your breathing maximizing the function of your lungs.

Positive Mindset

As much as we are what we eat the same is true for our thought patterns. You are what you think. Choose to have a positive mindset. Life is full of challenges, but having a positive mindset helps us better cope with stress and life’s disappointments. Positive or negative thinking is a choice we make. Choose to see the positive in everything. Life is a learning process. We can’t change the past only the present. The past is history, the future's a mystery and living in the moment is a gift. This is why they call it “the present”.

Healthy Spine & Nervous System

The spine is very important because it protects and houses our nervous system. Take care of it and it will take care of you. Keep your spine free of vertebral subluxation complexes and improve your spinal health through regular check-ups and tunes-ups with a chiropractor. Similar to regular dental health check-ups and cleaning, regular chiropractic check-ups improve your spinal health and hygiene.

Chiropractic is safe when compared to the majority of medical procedures and most medications. Not only it is a safe and effective treatment, many studies consistently show a very high satisfaction rating when compared to physical therapy and regular medical care. It takes about the same amount of time in post-secondary education to be a Doctor of Chiropractic as it does a general medical practitioner.